Oral thrush is caused by a fungal infection of the mouth and tongue. It is caused by a group of yeast organisms called Candida, and is also known as oropharyngeal candidiasis. It is normal to have a small amount of these fungal organisms living in your mouth and gastrointestinal tract without causing any harm, but if they start to multiply uncontrollably, you can develop an infection. Oral thrush is usually a mild infection which is easily treatable with antifungal medications, but it can also be an indication of a weakened immune system,...

What is Zika?
Zika is a type of virus. Zika virus is closely related to the dengue virus. Like dengue Zika is also spread mainly through mosquito bites, Aedes mosquito.
Zika has occurred in Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific Islands. Since May of 2015, there has been an outbreak happening in Central and South America, Mexico, and the Caribbean. The virus has also been found in Thailand, Australia, the United States and China.
Most of the infection has happened to people who have travelled to countries where the virus is found.
What are...

We all know that Chlamydia is an extremely commonly diagnosed STD.
It is the number 1 commonest STD in Singapore, Japan and many other parts of the world.
But how likely are you to catch it if you had sex with someone who has Chlamydia?
A recent study done by the Melbourne Sexual Heath Centre helped shed some light on this.
This study was published in the Journal Of Sexually Transmitted Infections (Sex Transm Infect. 2015;91(6):434-439)
The Centre did a cross-sectional study of patients over a 3 year period from 2010 to 2013. They...

It has been more than 30 years since HIV was first discovered. We have come a long way.
These days, HIV patients are living a normal life like anyone else. However, till date, HIV-related stigma and discrimination still exist in every corner of the world. Why? This comes down to the very basic of human nature. We fear things that we do not know about. We shy away from things that we do not understand. This is a fundamental problem that needs to be addressed. And how do we do that? The answer is very simple: Knowledge and education. This is why...

The UN has reached its goal to treat 15 million people living with HIV.
According to an article written by BBC news, the UN has achieved its target of treating 15 million people living with HIV as of March 2015 – 9 months before the planned schedule end. This landmark target has been reached thanks to global efforts to get anti-retroviral drugs to those who need it most including those living in the poorest parts of sub-Saharan Africa.
The UN first started their plan in 2000, where fewer than 700,000 people living with HIV were receiving...

Most of us would have known by now that a deadly viral disease called MERS have affected the South Korea recently. Since it has been on the news daily, there is no doubt that it has created fear and anxiety among us, especially for those who have to travel frequently.
We have been getting a number of enquiries about this disease. Some asked if we have a vaccine against this virus. Some wanted to know if it is safe to travel to South Korea’s neighbouring countries. Some asked if they had been infected with the virus after coming back from...